De-icing compositions are widely used in northern areas of the country, particularly in the northern climates subjected to heavy ice and snow conditions in the winter months. The inventor of the present composition has numerous patents on ice melters. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,683,619 which relates to a solid ice melting composition which is environmentally friendly. The disclosure of U.S. Pat. No. 5,683,619 is incorporated herein by reference.
A good ice melter for roads, sidewalks, parking lots, etc. is inexpensive, easy to manufacture, effective in melting snow and ice, easy to apply. The best also provide reduced corrosion to application equipment while also having beneficial effects to vegetation. All of these advantages in one ice melter has been a goal of the ice melting industry for some time.
Effective in melting means a product capable of melting below zero F. Ease of application is also important because labor cost is one of the largest components of melting snow and ice. Liquid melters bring ease to the application process.
In my earlier U.S. Pat. No. 5,683,619 (Ossian & Steinhauser), we created a product that melted below zero and could have a positive effect on vegetation. The major disadvantages to this earlier invention were the high cost to produce the product and cost of application. It used calcium chloride and urea in a dry melter composition. When calcium chloride is manufactured for industrial use it starts out as a liquid. The water is then evaporated off to form a flake or pellet. This manufacturing process uses considerable energy adding to the cost of manufacture for the raw material. Some of this cost could be avoided if the ice melter were liquid as finished.
The solid ice melter of U.S. Pat. No. 5,683,619 is advantageous in that it is an effective melter, and it brings a positive effect on vegetation. It is in combination urea and calcium chloride in a solid particle format. In recent times it has been of interest to develop liquid ice melters. In some environments, liquid ice melters are preferred to solid ice melters in that they give better coverage, they are much quicker acting melters, and they are more economical to prepare.
The liquid ice melter of this invention is a product that is less expensive to manufacture, easy to use, melts below zero and can have a positive effect on vegetation. In this invention, I use liquid calcium chloride solution combined with either dry or liquid urea, in critical ratios to achieve an effective liquid ice melter.
In this invention, I add one part urea by weight to calcium chloride ranging from two parts to nine parts by weight, all in a liquid solution. It has similar melting characteristics to straight liquid calcium chloride if the ratios and concentration are correct. In addition, it has reduced corrosion when compared to straight calcium chloride solution. With the final product being liquid in nature, it is easy to apply through standard spray equipment used to normally dispense ice melting liquids.
In accordance with this invention, it is therefore a primary objective to develop a liquid ice melter which contains in predominant proportions calcium chloride solution and urea blended in proper proportions so that it is not only liquid but also environmentally friendly. The result is an effective liquid ice melting composition that can be easily applied using spray tanks, etc. and that forms an effective ice melt cover.